Devon Alexander: Don King's Hope For "Thrilla In Manila 2" Dims With His Loss

Don King's plan to stage a sequel to the historic Thrilla in Manila, which featured legendary boxers Muhammad Ali and Joe Frasier more than three decades ago, has been put on hold with the loss of Devon Alexander to Timothy Bradley Saturday in Pontiac, Michigan.

Last week, popular promoter Don King was mulling a Pacquiao vs. Alexander fight with equally popular boxing promoter Bob Arum, who promotes Pacquiao under his Top Rank Promotions, which he owns. King thinks a Pacquiao vs. Alexander match can happen if Alexander won over Bradley.

Unfortunately, Alexander lost to Bradley via a unanimous decision. Alexander is being promoted by Don King of the promotions company bearing his name.

The Thrilla in Manila was the third and final fight between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frasier for the heavyweight boxing championship of the world. The historic fight, which was promoted by Don King, took place at the Araneta Coliseum in 1975.

The Manila boxing event is considered by many as one of the greatest boxing fights of the 20th century, which ended the bitter rivalry between Ali and Frasier over who was the real and legitimate heavyweight champion at that time.

When Don King talked about the sequel to this historic fight last week, many boxing fans in the Philippines and around the world were excited to see Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao figure in the highly-anticipated boxing event.

But with the loss of Alexander, the excitement quickly subsided, though Don King has not yet issued any statement on the matter.

It may be recalled, though, Don King also mentioned Ricardo Mayorga, who is facing Miguel Cotto on March 12 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“When we get past Tim Bradley, there won’t be anywhere else to go because we’ve talked about Manny Pacquiao for Ricardo Mayorga," King said. "Devon Alexander is a Jewel of The Nile and he will be there shining brilliantly. When he wins this fight on Jan. 29, then he will be able to stand tall and to say, ‘Let’s do it.’"

Don King and Bob Arum are co-promoting the upcoming fight between Miguel Cotto of Puerto Rico, who is under Arum's Top Rank Promotions, and Ricardo Mayorga of Managua, Nicaragua.

So Don King and Bob Arum  talked about Pacquiao vs. Mayorga. Now that Devon Alexander is out of the picture, will they now talk about a possible clash between Manny Pacquiao and Ricardo Mayorga?

Only if the guy from Nicaragua wins over the durable Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto.

In the meantime, let's hear what King and Arum have to say about the prospect of a Pacquiao vs. Mayorga fight in Manila and what boxing fans say about the fight.